2024

Räikkönen, Juulia; Sorakunnas, Esko; Grénman, Miia

Human activities profoundly influence the current state of Earth’s systems (Dasgupta, 2021) and the ongoing ecological crisis driven by climate change and an alarming decline in biodiversity (Díaz et al., 2019; IPBES, 2019). International tourism, particularly air travel, contributes to this crisis alongside other human activities (Lapp et al., 2022; Lenzen et al., 2018). This paper investigates consumer attitudes towards possible restrictions on leisure air travel and the potential benefits and challenges of implementing such restrictions. The study analyses the effectiveness, acceptability, fairness, and intrusiveness of different policy measures aimed at reducing CO2 emissions and mitigating biodiversity loss. The data consists of a consumer survey conducted in Finland in two stages: a pilot survey (n=200) and the actual survey (n=2000) collected in the spring of 2024. The preliminary results of the pilot survey revealed a spectrum of consumer attitudes ranging from intense resistance to top-down interference in consumption habits to those supporting stringent policies to preserve biodiversity and combat climate change. Interestingly, a significant proportion of respondents supported policies limiting CO2 emissions with restrictions on flying. These individuals prioritized biodiversity conservation and expressed concern about biodiversity loss and climate change impacts. The results highlight the importance of governmental intervention in guiding consumer behaviour amid the ecological crisis and emphasize the need for proactive policies. Top-down restrictions on air travel could lead to a shift in tourist behaviour and encourage the use of alternative modes of travel (e.g., rail and sea), thereby reducing CO2 emissions. However, the eventual implementation of such limitations would entail significant economic challenges related to international tourist logistics, accessibility to remote destinations, and the affordability of tourism consumption in general. All these challenges reflect tourism’s dependence on air transportation and the industry’s structural resistance to change. Nevertheless, this study offers much-needed information about consumers’ perceptions of policies that would radically alter air travel, contributing to the ongoing discourse on the sustainability of future tourism.